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Dinner with a client

3K views 44 replies 20 participants last post by  abroadinSacto 
#1 ·
I've been doing freelance work for a while now, and soon I'll be meeting up with my client for dinner. This is the first time that we'll be seeing each other in person (after months of e-mail correspondence), and she has mentioned that dinner will be on her. The other members of the team will also be there.

My client hasn't mentioned where we'll be eating (she probably hasn't picked a place yet), and I don't know how to tell her I'm veg (thus hinting that we should eat at a place with veggie options) without coming across as bossy or picky. Or maybe I should just keep quiet about it and grab a quick bite beforehand?

 
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#3 ·
next time you email, maybe you could casually add that you forgot to mention you are vegetarian. it's probably better, from now on, to mention it as soon as any talk of getting together to eat comes up. i know it can feel awkward sometimes when it comes to telling clients things you ordinarily wouldn't mention. but better she find out sooner than get pissed when you don't eat anything and she feels you don't appreciate her choice in restaurants even though you had ample time to tell her. wouldn't it be great if she turns out to be veg too? too much to hope for?
 
#4 ·
You could casually ask her where dinner will be because you're vegetarian and would like to call ahead and see what will be available for you to eat. That way you're offering to do the footwork, but at the same time hinting that it would be nice if she chose a place that would have an option or two for you.
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by fyvel View Post

You could casually ask her where dinner will be because you're vegetarian and would like to call ahead and see what will be available for you to eat. That way you're offering to do the footwork, but at the same time hinting that it would be nice if she chose a place that would have an option or two for you.
That's a great idea. It informs her in a way that doesn't make her feel burdened with finding choices.
 
#7 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by fyvel View Post

You could casually ask her where dinner will be because you're vegetarian and would like to call ahead and see what will be available for you to eat. That way you're offering to do the footwork, but at the same time hinting that it would be nice if she chose a place that would have an option or two for you.
Good idea.


Thanks, everyone!
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by fyvel View Post

You could casually ask her where dinner will be because you're vegetarian and would like to call ahead and see what will be available for you to eat. That way you're offering to do the footwork, but at the same time hinting that it would be nice if she chose a place that would have an option or two for you.
Great suggestion! I'm going to take this advice myself. I am forever finding myself at a steakhouse with a vendor or dealer and unable to eat anything but a plain baked potato.
 
#14 ·
Well, I guess if it makes you feel better about yourselves, but that type of attitude is going to do nothing but outrage, divide, and alienate people and generally negate the peaceful message that the majority of vegetarians are trying to espouse.

If you want people to listen to you, you don't start by calling them names.
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by TrailMix View Post

Well, I guess if it makes you feel better about yourselves, but that type of attitude is going to do nothing but outrage, divide, and alienate people and generally negate the peaceful message that the majority of vegetarians are trying to espouse.

If you want people to listen to you, you don't start by calling them names.
I don't go around calling people that. I know how to be diplomatic. But that doesn't mean I disagree with it.

--Fromper

 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by TrailMix View Post

Well, I guess if it makes you feel better about yourselves, but that type of attitude is going to do nothing but outrage, divide, and alienate people and generally negate the peaceful message that the majority of vegetarians are trying to espouse.
Well, we don't want to give the impression either the we're all peacenik kind of hippies either, do we?

The Christian "Love your enemies" doesn't go down with everyone.

But I doubt anyone goes around calling meat-eaters murderers to their faces... especially their clients. We're on veggieboards here - not in a "normal" social environment. (Long live the day when that "normal" environment is at last recognised as sick and barbaric). And as we're on veggieboards, we have a space here where we can let our hair down and talk of our frustrations with the omnivores.

And sometimes a bit of straight talk is better than beating about the bush. Like the time someone told me I was being a ****ing hypocrite for being vegetarian. That was the coolest thing anyone has ever told me. It was that final push - because I realised it as the truth - that encouraged me to go 100% vegan.
 
#20 ·
Well, back to the original topic:

I eat out with clients all of the time. What I do is I say 'Hey dinner sounds great but seeing as I'm one of those crazed vegans, why don't you let me pick out a restaurant? I was thinking of <medium priced omni Italian restaurant with vegan options> or <posh omini restaurant where chef will make vegan options not on menu>' This takes away the decision making process altogether and ensures you get a good meal.

I used to leave the selection process to the client but I would invariably end up at some crap restaurant with a plate of steamed veg over rice or something equally boring and awful. Pick the restaurant out yourself.
 
#21 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Licence View Post

I thought there was a rule that to be a member of this board you either have to be vegetarian / vegan or be very close to going that way, so how anyone on this board can be offended by the phrase Meat is Murder is utterly beyond me.
Not everyone is veg*n for ethical reasons. Some people avoid meat for health reasons only and don't care about the animals. I'm not one of them, but you have to understand that there are a lot of different perspectives, and not everyone on VB agrees on everything.

--Fromper

 
#26 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by gillibean View Post

I agree and adore your avatar! Giraffe's are one of the coolest animals ever!
Thanks! I love giraffes. Choosing that avatar stems from an "insult" that someone threw at me (and my husband turned into a nickname) when I told them I was going to go veg. Someone called me a "long-necked leaf-eating freak." So I immediately thought of a giraffe. LOL
 
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